No, Really

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Annie The Little Red Dog (aka ATLRD) is a pretty good pup most the time these days. When she was younger, though, she would express her displeasure at not being INCLUDED IN EVERYTHING by chewing stuff up. Stuff that wasn't hers to chew up, particularly if I had handled it - things like bedspreads, rugs, socks, house shoes, personal items of underwear one might find in a laundry basket (before they've been washed, ew!), a shawl I had JUST knitted, a pair of bamboo knitting needles (shredded!), another shawl I was knittING, empty cups, straws and tissues from the trash, any kind of wrappers from the trash, pens and pencils. Markers. Crayons. Notebooks.

This activity taught me to get heavy trashcans with well-fitting lids and foot pedals to open them, and to keep my laundry confined or washed, and to keep anything I didn't want eaten off the floor and out of reach.

She has done quite a bit better, the older she gets. It's been a good while since I returned home to find a little trail of whatever chewed up on the floor.

Today, though. (Heavy sigh)

This was yardman day. I always "lock her up" on yardman day. She loves men, so she's about as like as not to go out to see them, and then wander out the open gate. She sees free air, she's off and running until SHE decides to come back, so on Yardman day, I block the doggie door so she can't get out, because I also have things to do on Wednesday mornings.

I guess today I was gone a little "too" long. No tissues, dirty laundry, or knitting projects in the middle of the floor, though. No, this time it was in the front bedroom. A little box that'd had crayons in it was laying on the floor, with an empty red crayon wrapper laying next to it - along with red, green, blue, and yellow crayon CRUMBS on the floor surrounding it. No trace of the other crayons, just the crumbs.

She didn't follow me in there, but was still in the house, so I started in with the dreaded, "WHAT IS THIS?" Man, she DISAPPEARED. She totally knows what "WHAT IS THIS?" means, and she does not like to hear it. She always looks like she'd 'bout rather take a beating than hear "WHAT IS THIS?" She put herself in time-out.

I hope they were tasty, those crayons. She's gonna be pooping bright wax confetti for the next couple days! And now I'll be sure ALL the bedroom doors are closed when I leave the house.

Sunday, September 6, 2015

"I dreamt that a bee kept on following me then sat down on my dress I could not shake it off, please what does that mean?" ﻿ Hester P.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for your question, Hester.

In your dream, a bee has come to you, and won't go away. This seems unsettling, perhaps because you don't know why it came to you, and maybe you're not sure what it might do, so there may be some sense of apprehension or fear. Let me say here that every dream is about the dreamer, and everyone, or every thing in the dream, represents some aspect of the dreamer's self. Dreams are a way that our higher mind tries to communicate with us; as such, dreams are a way for us to learn things, primarily about ourselves, so that we can be better people and live better, fuller, more effective lives.

In your dream, the bee followed you, then sat on your dress, and you were unable to shake it off.

Garments (your dress) represent how we present ourselves to the world.In your dream, you are wearing a dress, a customary garment for females in many parts of the world. This is about the way thatyou seek to fit in and be "one of," a member of your community.

Bees represent diligence, going on, moving forward, no matter what. Because of their honey, they represent the sweetness of life, reward for diligence, hard work, and right behavior. They also represent accomplishing the impossible, because their bodies are supposed to be too large for their wings, which should make it impossible for them to fly, and yet they do fly. So the Bee is a symbol of accomplishing that which you put you mind to, even when it seems impossible.

As I mentioned before, bees work every day, no matter what. They go from flower to flower, gathering nectar and pollen, and bring it "home" to the hive and turn it into food for the "family." They are fairly peaceful most of the time, because they have a lot of work to do in order to survive. They are too busy to get involved in a lot of drama that really doesn't have anything to do with them. Yes, they peacefully tend to their own business, but they can be fierce if necessary. When threatened, they will protect themselves and each other - but they really have to mean it if they are going to sting someone, because when a bee stings someone, it loses its stinger, and then it dies, so that is a last resort option.

So - all of this - diligence, sweetness, reward, hard work, doing the right thing, accomplishing the "impossible," because that is what you are determined to do, behaving peacefully unless threatened, but able to be fierce when necessary - all this is represented to you in the form of a little bee. It sat on your dress and would not be removed.

Since every dream is about the dreamer, and everyone and every thing in the dream represents some aspect of the dreamer, I can tell you that there are parts of you that are like the bee as I just described it. And since it landed on your dress, (which represents how you present yourself to the world) and wouldn't go away, this is a message to encourage you to cultivate and further develop these qualities of the bee in yourself - the qualities of diligence, sweetness, hard work, accepting and partaking of the reward for that hard work, doing the right thing (behaving morally), moving forward, even through adversity or opposition, doing so in as peaceful a manner as possible and avoiding excessive drama (which distracts and is counterproductive), and yet having the ability to stand up for yourself and those you love if that becomes necessary. Focus on these qualities. They already exist within you!

Thank you for sharing your dream with me, Hester. I hope this interpretation has been helpful.

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Mrs. Vicki, what do you think this could mean?" Monica K." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That sounds like a good dream! Bees ARE very busy, and making honey isn't the only thing they do.

They, of course, are significant pollinators of plants, and are involved in other things too complex to go into here. Honey is a by-product of their efforts, and now that they've been so busy and done all that work, they have a hive full of honey to sustain themselves through the winter, and a little extra to share with their beekeeper. Getting the honey represents reaping or harvesting or retrieving the benefits of all that hard work and activity.

Couple more points to bear in mind: remember that the benefit is the result of a lot of focused, diligent work. The beekeeper must remember to leave some of the honey with the bees so they can survive to work another season. And the work is never over. The bees have to get up every blessed day and do it all over again. They don't even think about it, they just do what's in front of them to do, and they keep doing it. With all this in mind, it's good to remember that every dream is about the dreamer, and everyone in the dream represents some aspect of the dreamer, so you are the beekeeper, who facilitates or makes a way and a place for the bees to live, watching out for them, making sure they're safe so they can continue working. Not only that, but you are also the bees, doing something every day to support your survival and even prosperity, along with the survival and prosperity of your family - doing what's in front of you to do, even if it seems dull and drudgery sometimes (which it's not, really) and even though it may not seem glamorous and spectacular. But if you think about it, what bees do - going from flower to flower, gathering nectar and pollen, bringing it home and turning that into food for the "family," the hive, and working together, and the way they protect themselves, and each other, even to the death if necessary - think about it - that really is extraordinary! And yet it's just another day in the life for the bees - and for you, too!

Awesome dream! Think of these things, especially when you're at your wits' end. I hope it will help revive you, the way honey revives the bees and adds pleasure to our lives.

Sunday, August 9, 2015

I recently received this photo of Dwarf Planets. I was
familiar with some of the names, and the idea that they represented ancient mythological deities and, as
such, carried special meaning. This made me curious about the others, so I
looked them up. Here is what I discovered:

Ceres is the Roman goddess
of agriculture.

Vesta is the hearth
goddess.

Pallas is the Greek Titan
god of warcraft.

Hygiea is the Greek goddess
of health.

Eris is the goddess
personification of strife and discord.

Dysnomia is a daughter of Eris. Her name means “Lawlessness,” and
is also the name of a disorder wherein one has difficulty remembering words or
names.

Pluto is a god of the
underworld.

Charon is the ferryman of
Hades who carries souls across the river Styx.

Makemake is the Rapa Nui
creator of humanity and god of fertility.

Haumea is the Hawiian
goddess of childbirth.

Namaka is a daughter of
Haumea and is the Hawaiian goddess of the sea.

Hi’iaka is a daughter of
Haumea and is the patron goddess of the Big Island of Hawaii.

Sedna is the Inuit goddess
of the sea, believed to live at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

Orcus is an Italic/Roman
god of the underworld and punisher of broken oaths.

Quaor (pronounced “Kwawar”)
is a Tongva creator god.

Varuna is a Hindu god of
water and the celestial ocean, and of the law of the underworld.

Vanth (a moon of Orcus) is
a winged Etruscan psychopomp who guides the souls of the departed to the
underworld.

Jupiter's moons are named after his lovers.

Saturn's moons are named after fellow Titans.

Kuiper Belt objects are named after mythological deities,
with preference given to creator deities.

A Psychopomp is a creature or entity that assists in the
transition between this life and the beyond. Some specialize in bringing new
lives forth here, and some specialize in guiding the newly departed to the next
realm. When guiding the departed, Psychopomps do not judge, they merely
guide.

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Here is a project that I started in 1963. I believe you can
easily see what I had in mind.

Here's a photograph of a 1962 Corvette. Note that
1962 is the key year that I
was targeting.

Here is a photograph of a
1963 Stingray.

Now, let's take one step
back and look at a 1960
Corvette.

So, it is easy to see the transition from the curvy Corvette
of the 1950's to the sharper and crisper lines of the classic
stingray of the 1960s.

Here is my project car.

This is the 1962 Corvette with the translation being exactly turned around. The sharper and more angular lines of the stingray are used on the front of the car while retaining the curvy lines on the rear.

The years have not been kind to the little plastic car. The tires have flattened and the canopy is yellowed with age. All the glue has released its grip and all the parts are somewhat warped. It doesn't fit together quite right and nothing holds it together. I found it in an old stationary box up on the shelf. The box was still about half full of blank paper. When I picked it up the chassis fell out from under the body and the interior tumbled out.

I remember that my friend Tom Braley had a Vacuform machine. I carved out the shape of the canopy from Balsa wood. The machine heated a sheet of plastic and then pumped all the air out so that it fit perfectly. We could re-create or fabricate plastic parts to suit our desire.

Another interesting feature of this car that I had completely forgotten is the engine. This is a supercharged 409 with four, two-barrel carbs. This car would not have been fast… It would've been terrifyingly fast.

So, there she sits; up on the shelf, over a half a century later. An alternate view for one nine six two.

Saturday, June 20, 2015

A rivalry has existed between Dallas and Fort Worth, maybe since Cain and Abel days.

Long time ago, a Dallas newspaper reported that Fort Worth was so dull that a panther was seen napping in the street, in the middle of the day. They took to calling Fort Worth "Panther City," initially as a jab. But the would-be insult backfired - the people of Fort Worth decided not to be insulted, and, instead took the moniker in good cheer. This is why you'll see Panther symbols and references to "Panther" this and "Panther" that in matters Fort Worth.

This amazing statue of a Panther was carved of stone a good many years ago in honor of Fort Worth's Spirit Animal. It stands in a fountain park next to the flatiron building downtown. There is also another one in a courtyard grove across the street from the courthouse. Amazing place, Fort Worth

Sunday, May 3, 2015

FRIDAY interestingly, after a particularly fierce round of storms had gone through, the huge old elm tree in Kent's back yard fell over. We knew that tree had issues, but we think now that it must have been deteriorating worse than we realized, and between that, the ground getting saturated with rain, and probably a post-storm burst of wind, it just fell smooth over, smashing the fence, wrecking the neighbor's above-ground pool and trampoline, and landing on top of the power line from the pole to Kent's house. This left most of Kent's house without power, but he still had power in some parts of the house. He called the number he could find for the power company, but all he could get was one of those computers that pretends it's a person, with the "press one for this," and "press two for that." None of the options really fit his situation, but he left a message as best he could. The machine said, "Your power will be restored in 24 hours," which would have been a neat trick, since the line was physically down.

SATURDAY, I went over to see how he was doing. He'd moved his coffee pot to one of the plugs that was still working and he was sort of "camping out." He had put in a call to Kyle, his lawn guy for the last five years to come over to either see about getting started on clearing the tree and debris out, or suggest someone who could. Kyle came on Saturday to look things over, but of course couldn't start on anything until the downed electrical line was addressed. Nothing could move forward at all until that electrical line was addressed.

SUNDAY we found another number to call the power company to report to a live human that we had a downed electrical line. The good news is that they sent someone right out, within an hour! The bad news is that they had to disconnect the line from the pole and the house. The ONCOR guy advised that we'd have to get an electrician to make some repairs to the connection and apparatus on the house before they could come back out and reconnect the electricity. So even though it was Sunday, we put in a call to an electrician we'd both used before and liked, only to learn that he's backed up for at least two weeks. Now totally without power, Kent packed up a few things and came to stay at my house until he can get put back together at his house.

MONDAY Kent got an early morning call from the neighbor into whose yard the tree had fallen, saying that there was a huge swarm of bees in his back yard. Apparently there had been a hive of bees in that tree, even though we had never seen even one bee. There was some discussion about spraying, but with that many bees, you wouldn't get them all right away, it would make them mad, and then there'd really be hell to pay, totally aside from the fact that bees are dying too much anyway. We brainstormed our options and located a beekeeper who was able to come right out. The Bee Charmer, very nice lady. She collected a five gallon bucket of bees and finished up just before the next wave of thunderstorms came through. We were able to locate an electrician who was able to make the repairs necessary to get reconnected.

TUESDAY the electrician made his repairs; then the city was supposed to make their inspection (which they were supposed to do the next day, but we can't tell if they did or not), and then we get on the list for when ever ONCOR can come out and hook the electricity back up. Kyle started work clearing the tree. We cleaned out the refrigerator and had to throw almost everything away, except for what Kent brought to my house when he came over. Jeez, a whole refrigerator full of food.

THURSDAY - Because of all the storms and storm damage recently, the insurance adjuster couldn't meet with Kent until Thursday, almost a week after the tree fell. He came out, and we went over all the information we had thus far.

FRIDAY Kyle called - he had started work clearing the tree earlier in the week, but is now unable to finish the job due to an elaborate series of circumstances, much to our great dismay.

SATURDAY hopefully we've found someone else who will be able to tackle that job, but it will likely be in bits and pieces. That tree is amazingly huge - even as it lays on the ground, it's about waist-high to me.

So Kent is my houseguest until he has power again. I am so happy to have him here, but I know all this has really thrown him way out of his routine. My part of the neighborhood is a little bit noisier than over where he lives, and along with being in a strange place, basically living out of a suitcase, and with everything else that's going on, It's sort of turned his life topsy turvy. All things considered, he's taking things pretty well.